Better Than Ever
by Percabeth4eva1
Summary: SHIELD is back and is rebuilding itself to better than the original. Unfortunately, they aren't the only ones with that skill set in mind, since HYDRA is being rebuilt from scratch as well and is a much leaner and tougher generation than the previous one. But SHIELD is stronger and will conquer them. Contains season 3 spoilers. Better than the summary suggests.
1. Chapter 1

_*Location: PLAYGROUND Base_

"Mack, do you know where Daisy is?" Coulson asked, since he couldn't find her anywhere.

"She's chasing down one last lead on Lincoln. She's still convinced that she can talk him in." Mack said.

"I know this is personal for her, since I'm fairly certain that she's going after him for the reason Fitz had for going after Simmons, but she's taken it too far and is gone too often when she's needed on the base." Coulson said.

"And what reason are you talking about sir?" Mack asked.

"Mack, I know what Daisy said to Lincoln the last time she saw him. The reason I'm talking about is love." Coulson said.

Mack chuckled and then said "I'm guessing that's the real reason you don't want her to go after Lincoln."

Coulson nodded and said "For as long as I've known her, every time Daisy opens her heart up in that way to a guy, they always wind up breaking it and hurting her. I don't want to see her have to go through that again."

"Sir, with all due respect, Daisy is old enough to make her own decisions in regards of her love life." Mack said.

"I know, it's just a stupid overprotective thing I have about her." Coulson replied.

* * *

 _*Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico_

Daisy was positive that Lincoln was here in New Mexico, since it's most likely where she would go if she was in his position, since the city was low key and full of people.

She was currently sitting on a park bench with her laptop, hacking into all security feeds and transaction records every business in the city that have occurred since the last time she saw Lincoln, hoping to find something that would help lead her to him.

And then she found it. About 2 months ago, a man named Winston Sparks had purchased an old flip phone, but when Daisy pulled up a photo of the guy, she saw it looked exactly like Lincoln. So, after getting the phone's number on her laptop, Daisy pulled out her cellphone and dialed it.

"Hello." Lincoln's voice said on the other side of the phone.

"Hey Spark plug." Daisy said with a smile.

"Daisy, how'd you find me?" Lincoln asked.

"Relax, you don't have another tracker planted on you. I found you because I know how to think like you." Daisy said.

"So what's this call about?" Lincoln asked.

"First I wanted to make sure you knew that I had nothing to do with Coulson handing you over the ATCU." Daisy said.

"Relax, I know you had nothing to do with that." Lincoln assured her.

"Good, and I also wanted to arrange a meeting. Just the 2 of us." Daisy said.

"Have you found my address yet?" Lincoln asked.

"Yeah, it just popped up." Daisy said.

"Come on over and we'll talk." Lincoln said.

"Be there in a bit." Daisy said as she hung up her phone.

* * *

Lincoln opened his apartment door to find Daisy waiting for him on the other side.

"Hey." He said simply.

"Hey, is it cool if I come in?" Daisy asked.

"Yeah, come on in." Lincoln said, showing her inside.

"Thanks, nice place you got here." Daisy said.

"Thanks, but anyway, what did you want to talk to me about?" Lincoln asked, even though he had a pretty good idea.

"You what I wanted to talk you about." Daisy said as they sat down on his couch.

"Yeah, but I want to know what makes you think you can convince me." Lincoln said.

"Because, once I walk out that door and if you're not there with me, there's a good chance you'll never see me again. Coulson is going to figure out where I keep going." Daisy said.

"Solid point, but you know I can't work with SHIELD after what Coulson did." Lincoln said.

"I'm not asking you to come and work with SHIELD or even with other inhumans." Daisy said.

"Than what are you asking me to do?" Lincoln asked.

"I'm asking you to come and work with me, not SHIELD, me." Daisy said.

"You promise Coulson won't make me work with SHIELD?" Lincoln asked.

"I promise. If I'm ever going to get this Secret Warriors team has me building out of the hangar, we need the candidates to be able to qualify, which means they'll need a transitioner." Daisy said.

"I accept." Lincoln said.

Daisy smiled as she leaned in and kissed him.

When they broke apart, Lincoln said "That's the other reason I'm going to take the job. So I can spend more time with you."

Daisy rolled her eyes and said "Come on, we need to go."

"Just give me a minute to pack my things." Lincoln said.

"Great, I'm gonna call Coulson at HQ, let him know that you're on board." Daisy said, pulled out her phone.

Lincoln nodded as he towards his bedroom to pack up his things.

* * *

 _*Location: PLAYGROUND Base._

When Daisy and Lincoln's quinjet landed at the hangar, Coulson was waiting for them.

"Lincoln, I'm glad to see you agreed to work with us." Coulson said.

"Not you, Daisy. For now at least, I've only agreed to work with Daisy." Lincoln said.

"Well, at least I know you're on our side at least." Coulson said and Lincoln nodded at that.

"I'll help you get settled into your room and then you can see if you can help Joey. His gift would really come in handy." Daisy said.

Lincoln nodded as he picked up his bags and let Daisy lead him out of the hangar.


	2. Chapter 2

While Lincoln was helping Joey with the transition process, Coulson called Daisy to his office.

"Yes sir." Daisy said.

"Mack told me what all of your little trips have really been about." Coulson said.

"And?" Daisy asked.

"I just wanted to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into by putting yourself out there again. Remember what happened with the last 2 guys you dated." Coulson reminded her.

"One was a sellout, the other is a Nazi." Daisy confirmed.

"And you got your heart broken by both of them. Are you sure you're ready to put yourself out there again?" Coulson asked.

"This feels more like father daughter talk than a director to agent talk." Daisy pointed out.

"That's because it is. You know the promise I made your father before we put him through the T.A.H.I.T.I. program." Coulson said.

"Since you already think of me as your daughter and I think of you as kind of like the father I never had, he asked you to promise him that you'd be the father I do have." Daisy said.

"And I wouldn't be keeping that promise if I didn't have this conversation with you." Coulson said.

"I understand your concern with my past in the dating department, but I know what I'm doing. Lincoln is different from Miles or Ward because he's a better man than either of them could ever hope to be." Daisy said.

"And there's also the SHIELD protocol about relations between agents." Coulson said.

"Doesn't seem to stop Fitzsimmons or Bobbi and Hunter." Daisy said.

"You sure you know what you're doing?" Coulson asked.

"Positive." Daisy responded.

"Then I trust your judgement. Just don't make me regret it." Coulson said.

"No promises." Daisy said with a grin as she left the office.

Coulson just rolled his eyes at his surrogate daughter's response before grabbing another prosthetic hand from his desk.

* * *

 _*A few weeks later_

"Hunter and May's quinjet just touched down. I guess their mission was a success." Daisy said to Coulson as she entered his office.

"Excellent." Coulson said.

"It'll be nice to have May back as second in command instead of me. No offense boss, this job is seriously stressful, I don't know how you and May do it." Daisy said.

"None taken, though I am putting you in charge of the index, specifically evaluation and intake. It's already kind of your responsibility as leader of the secret warriors program, but still." Coulson said.

"Thank you sir, though you'll have to give me administrative access to the index in order for me to perform my job successfully." Daisy said.

"Done." Coulson said, right as Agents Hunter and May joined them in Coulson's office.

"May." Daisy said, holding out her hand, but to her surprise, May actually hugged her.

"Welcome home agent May. Agent Hunter." Coulson said as he shook Hunter's hand and then May's.

"Good to be back sir." May said.

"Hunter, does Bobbi know you're back yet?" Daisy asked.

"Yep." Hunter said.

"I assume that Ward is dead?" Coulson asked.

"No, our cover was blown before we got the chance, but we did manage to snag this." Hunter said, tossing Daisy a hard drive.

"Let me guess, HYDRA's entire mainframe is on this thing?" Daisy asked.

"As much as we could get." May confirmed.

"I'll see what I can do with it." Daisy said as she walked out.

"So, what's been going on at the base while we were gone?" Hunter asked.

"Fitz has been helping both Bobbi and Jemma with their rehab and I think Bobbi is almost ready to return to active field duty, we've made an alliance with the ATCU and Daisy managed to talk Lincoln into coming onto the base." Coulson said.

"How'd she swing that?" Hunter asked.

"For the same reason that you went on after Ward and Fitz was so hell bent on getting Simmons back. Love. Those 2 are in love with each other." Coulson said.

"Hunter, can I speak with Coulson in private?" May asked.

"Yeah, I need to go find Bob before she kills me for not letting her know I was back sooner." Hunter said with a chuckle as he left the office.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" Coulson asked, even though, since May was almost as close to Daisy as he was, he thought he knew.

"Are you sure it's a good idea to let her date him, especially given what happened the last time she let herself fall in love." May said, referring to Ward.

"I already expressed my concerns to Daisy and she assures me that she knows what she's doing." Coulson said.

"I know she can handle herself, but I don't want to see her get her heartbroken any more than you do." May said.

"May, we have to trust Daisy knows what she's doing. In the past few weeks she's been with Lincoln, I've seen her happier than I have in a long time. She's been smiling more often." Coulson said.

May was surprised to hear that, since she knew that Daisy didn't smile that often anymore.

"You're certain he's good enough for her?" May asked.

"According to Daisy, the whole reason he was captured by HYDRA was because he was trying to protect her, so I think we can trust that he won't abandon her like Ward or Miles did." Coulson said.

"I'd still kind of like to do the whole overprotective mother thing with him." May said.

"Be my guest. Daisy is already aware of how you feel like she's your own daughter and has warned her boyfriend to be prepared when you got back." Coulson said with a chuckle.

May chuckled as well, right as Daisy burst back into the office.

"What's wrong?" Coulson asked.

"It's Andrew. He's in big trouble." Daisy said.

"What are you talking about?" May asked, getting concerned.

"One of the first things I found after decrypting this drive was one of HYDRA's first directives. Ward put a HYDRA mole at Culver University, as a means to get to May." Daisy said.

"Who is the mole?" Coulson asked.

"Someone who's almost as bad as Ward. Strucker's son, Werner Von Strucker." Daisy said.

"May, get in contact with, Daisy, take Mack and Hunter to run an extraction." Coulson said.

"Yes sir." Daisy and May both said at once.


	3. Chapter 3

_*Location: Culver University, Willowdale, Virginia._

Andrew was currently sitting at his desk in his office at the university, grading papers, when his phone rang.

"Hello." Andrew said.

"Andrew, you're in danger." May's voice said from the other end of the line.

"Nice greeting, but what are you talking about?" Andrew asked.

"Hunter and I just got back from HYDRA, where our cover was blown and Daisy discovered that Ward placed a HYDRA mole on the university campus." May said.

"Who is it?" Andrew asked.

"Alexander Braun, whose real name is actually Werner von Strucker. Daisy, Mack and Hunter are their way to pick you up." May told him.

"Thanks for the heads up. I better go turn in my resignation to the university and pack my bags. See you at HQ." Andrew said as he hung up.

* * *

 _*Location: PLAYGROUND Base._

"Well?" Coulson asked.

"He sounded relieved that we were coming to get him and that I was still alive, but I think he's terrified." May said.

"Daisy and her team should be there soon to get him. I just hope Strucker doesn't go after Andrew before we can get to him." Coulson said.

"You and me both." May said.

* * *

Back at the university, Andrew had just finished packing when he heard his door open.

"Please be Daisy." Andrew muttered, only to find it was Strucker.

"Sorry Professor, but I've got a new assignment." Strucker told him.

"And what is it?" Andrew asked.

"Kill you." Strucker said, pulling out a gun and firing it.

Andrew managed to dodge the bullet, but it still his arm.

He grabbed his bag and ran out of his office, hoping to he make it until SHIELD arrived.

* * *

"Remember, this is an extraction, not a combat op. Only engage if necessary." Daisy said as their plane landed.

"There he is. And it looks like he's been shot." Hunter said.

"Hunter, get him aboard, Mack and I will cover you." Daisy said.

Hunter nodded in agreement as he helped Andrew aboard.

"Was anyone following you?" Daisy asked.

"I don't know. I was too focused on trying not to bleed out." Andrew said, gasping for breath.

"Hunter, bandage his arm, Mack, get us in the air." Daisy said, wanting to get clear before they drew more attention to themselves.

"On it." They both said.

* * *

"How is he?" Coulson asked as he talked to Daisy over the phone on their way back.

"Gunshot wound to the left arm, but besides, that, he just kind of shaken up. Hunter's got his arm wrapped up and we're about an hour out from the base." Daisy said.

"Great, see you when you get back." Coulson said as he hung up.

"Coulson sounded relieved and I'm sure May will be waiting in the hangar when we get back." Daisy said as she sat down next to the good doctor.

"Nice to know she's back. And thanks for the save." Andrew said.

"No problem." Hunter said.

"We'll be in the air for a little while longer. Try to get some rest." Daisy suggested as she went up the cockpit with Mack.

"I'll try." Andrew said.

* * *

After their plane landed back at HQ, Daisy headed back to her room to get back to work on decrypting the HYDRA drive May and Hunter had brought back, knowing how important that it was that they got as much intel from it as they could, Mack headed up to Coulson's office to let the man know about the extraction and Hunter was designated to take Andrew to the lab, where May and Bobbi were waiting.

"It's good to see you Melinda." Andrew said.

"You to." May said.

"Okay, you 2 can flirt after I'm done patching you up." Bobbi said.

"Go on ahead." Andrew said.

* * *

After Andrew had the bullet in his arm removed and his arm properly bandaged, he and May headed over to the main recreation area, where May had grabbed 2 glasses and a bottle of wine.

"I'm sorry about your arm." May said as she poured Andrew a glass.

"Thanks, but it's not your fault. Ward would've come after me eventually due to my ties with SHIELD." Andrew said, to trying to make her feel better.

"No, Ward came after you as a way to get to me. That's how he works." May said.

"Melinda, don't blame yourself. I knew what I was getting myself into when I took interest in a high ranking SHIELD agent." Andrew said with a chuckle.

May couldn't help but chuckle as well, realizing that it he had a point.

* * *

"Jemma, how are you feeling?" Daisy asked as she passed Simmons on her way back to her bunk.

"Better at least. Still a little disoriented and still getting used to the whole return to earth thing, but I'm getting better." Jemma said.

"That's good. Because I get the feeling that once Bobbi is cleared for field duty, she'll be out of the lab for good and we'll need you back in it." Daisy said.

Jemma chuckled, knowing she was right.

"Having Fitz by my side most of the time helps. It also helps that Coulson lets us go out one night a week, kind of help me get away from SHIELD and accustomed to the rest of the world." Jemma said.

"Have you seen your parents yet?" Daisy asked, since she knew Jemma's family had no idea about her going MIA.

"Not yet. I've talked to them over the phone a few times since I got back, but I haven't been to see them yet, since I want to wait until I can handle being in the sunlight for more than a few minutes a day." Jemma said, since while her body was able to comprehend and handle artificial lighting, natural sunlight was still a challenge for her.

"Well, as someone who grew up without parents, it's not fun." Daisy said as she walked off towards her room.


	4. Chapter 4

"Wonder why Coulson called us to his office?" Daisy said to Lincoln as they walked towards it.

"You don't think he has a problem with the 2 of us dating do you?" Lincoln asked, since they hadn't really been discreet about their relationship.

"No, trust me, if Coulson had a problem with us dating, he would've already addressed it with us by now." Daisy said as they entered the director's office.

* * *

"You wanted to see us sir?" Lincoln asked.

"Yes, does this picture look familiar to either of you?" Coulson asked, showing them his tablet, which had the picture of women with long red hair.

"That's Alisha." Lincoln said.

"So you recognize her?" Coulson asked.

"Yeah, we both do. Alisha was one of the inhumans who sided with my mother. She has the ability to create clones of herself. We lost track of her after the battle until now." Daisy said.

"I'm aware of what her gift is. Apparently she has a thing for making bad choices, because ever since the inhumans on the Iliad were defeated, she's been using it to run kind of crime ring, but now we've got her location and I've convinced Rosalind Price and the ATCU to let you 2 try and talk her into SHIELD before they go in and take her by force." Coulson said.

"Yes sir." Daisy said.

"I'm in." Lincoln said.

"Her coordinates have been uploaded to Zephyr One, bring her in before the ATCU do it." Coulson said.

"Will do." Daisy said as they headed out.

* * *

When they arrived at the coordinates, Daisy was surprised to see how nice the house was.

"Well, say what you want about her, but crime does pay." Lincoln said.

"Would you mind?" Daisy asked her boyfriend, gesturing to the iron electrified fence.

"Gladly." He responded, putting his hand on the fence and shorted out the whole system.

"Let's go." Daisy said.

"Why don't you knock?" Lincoln said, knowing Daisy still had an axe to grind with Alisha for jumping her back on the _Iliad._

"With pleasure." Daisy said, blasting the gates off their hinges.

Alisha and an army of her clones were already waiting for them.

"Lincoln, Skye, what are you doing on my property?" Alisha asked.

"Hoping to stop you from making any more bad choices Alisha. And it's Daisy now. Though I have half a mind to kill you after your little ambush on me back on the carrier." Daisy said.

"I was misled, just like the 2 of you were." Alisha said.

"Whatever, Alisha, you've been calling too much attention yourself with these robberies. Come in with us." Lincoln said.

"Why should I?" Alisha asked.

"Because the ATCU wants your head on a silver platter and there's this new guy who's been hunting down inhumans and I'm willing to bet that you're on his wish list." Daisy said.

"What are you talking about?" Alisha asked.

Daisy pulled up a picture of the character she and Lincoln saw at the hospital.

"We call him Lash. He's big, mean, dangerous, and lethal and has a serious axe to grind with other inhumans. Come with us and we can protect you from him." Daisy said.

"I guess I don't really have a choice. Just give me a second to get all my things packed up." Alisha said sending her clones back inside to pack up her things.

"Good answer." Lincoln said, knowing his girlfriend would most likely have used her powers to knock Alisha out and take her with them anyway as revenge for what happened on the carrier.

* * *

"So, you both work for SHIELD now?" Alisha asked.

"I do. Lincoln here only works with me. Not SHIELD." Daisy said.

"Really, why?" Alisha asked.

"That's none of your business." Lincoln said.

"And just so you know Alisha, I don't trust you at all. You're coming in because your gift could be useful to the Secret Warriors team I've been assembling. Which is why Coulson agreed that until I was sure I could trust you, you'll be wearing this." Daisy said, pulling a silver bracelet out of her pocket.

"A bracelet?" Alisha asked.

"It's a SHIELD tracking bracelet. I had to wear one for weeks back after I first joined, but anyway, this bracelet is synced to my tablet, so I'll always be able to know where you are and it'll prevent you accessing certain points of the base without prior permission, like the lab." Daisy said.

Alisha looked towards Lincoln, who said "Don't look at me. SHIELD actually trusts me, since I eventually turned to their side back on the carrier, plus Daisy vouched for me, so I didn't have to wear one of those."

"The bracelet is also designed to replicate like you do when you use your powers, so you can't use your clones to get around it." Daisy said.

"I guess I have no choice but to wear it." Alisha said, taking the bracelet and locking it on her wrist.

Daisy's face softened a bit and then said "It's only temporary, until you prove to us, well to me, that we can trust you."

Alisha nodded.

* * *

When they returned to the base, Coulson was waiting for them.

"Welcome back. I see Daisy already gave you our little present." Coulson said to Alisha.

"Better than being thrown into a jail cell." Alisha said.

"Daisy will show you to your room and then will show to the lab for index and recruitment evaluation." Coulson said.

Alisha nodded and let Daisy lead her away.

Coulson then turned to Lincoln and said "Can I speak to you in my office alone for a moment?"

"Yeah sure." Lincoln said.

* * *

"What did you want to speak with me about?" Lincoln asked.

"I wanted to offer you a permanent job here. Become an agent." Coulson said.

Lincoln thought about it, and over the past few months he's been working with SHIELD, he has been enjoying it, actually spending time with people who understand him, especially Daisy, and being able to help people like him.

"I'll do it." He said.

"Great." Coulson said, relieved as he pulled out a contract for Lincoln to sign.


	5. Chapter 5

"What did Coulson want to talk to you about?" Daisy asked her boyfriend.

"He offered me a full time job." Lincoln said.

"And?" Daisy asked

"I accepted." Lincoln answered.

"Great." Daisy said as she kissed him.

"Uh, you know other people like to hang out in here without having to watch the 2 of you kiss." Fitz said.

"Like you're one to talk, the way you spend the nights in Jemma's bunk." Daisy said, tossing a pillow at the engineer.

"Not funny Daisy." Fitz said as Jemma joined them.

"What's not funny?" Jemma asked as she joined them in the rec quarters, sitting down next to her boyfriend.

"Nothing Jemma." Fitz said, kissing her forehead.

* * *

 _6 months later_

 _Location- Brooklyn New York_

Jeremy Knights was currently freaking out, since right now, he was feeling like a stranger in his own body, since ever since he had taken a fish oil pill like he had a dozen times before, that his world had been turned upside down.

He had been encompassed in some form of rocky cocoon the second after he had swallowed the pill and once the cocoon had broken away, he had these weird powers where he wasn't even sure what was happening to him.

His own wife and kid were cowering in fear of him and he had destroyed at good portion of their house.

Jeremy tried to grab his phone to call 911, but the second the phone touched his hand, it blew up, just like everything else he had tried to grab.

Then suddenly, the door was kicked in and 3 people ran into the house, a man and 2 women. The front woman was dark haired looked like she was the leader of this team. The man was blonde and had mustache and goatee and the other woman was tall, with red hair and silver bracelet on her wrist.

"Copy Cat, secure the perimeter, Price isn't giving us much time before her unit takes him in." the front woman said.

The other woman, whose name was apparently Copy Cat, nodded and walked out.

"Sparkplug, go and get the man's wife and kid and let them know that we're moving out soon." The woman than said to the man, who also nodded.

"Who are you?" Jeremy asked.

"My name is Daisy. My partners and I work with SHIELD, we're here for your protection." Daisy said

"SHIELD." Jeremy said.

"It's complicated, but trust me. Coming with us is your wisest option. We know what's happened to you and we can help you." Daisy said

"What's happening to me?" Jeremy asked.

"Our interval is almost up?" the other woman called from outside the door.

"Please, just trust me on this. SHIELD is your best option." Daisy assured him.

"Okay." Jeremy said.

"Great, now come on." Daisy said, leading him outside.

"Why do we need to be out here?" Jeremy asked.

"So there's enough for this." The man, Sparkplug, said as he came out with Jeremy's kid, but not his wife.

"Where's my wife?" Jeremy asked, right as she came out.

"I'm sorry Jeremy, but I can't stay married to you now that you're a freak. And you can keep Lucas." His wife said, referring to their son.

"But Riley wait." Jeremy said.

"Jeremy, trust me when I say we don't have time." Daisy said, placing her hand on his shoulder.

"Enough room for what?" Lucas asked.

"This." The other woman said as she dropped the landing pad on the ground and then the extraction module dropped down.

"Jeremy, get in the module now if you want survive this." Daisy said.

That last part is what made Jeremy not hesitate as he practically jumped into the escape pod.

"Lucas, come with us." Daisy said.

"Where is my dad going?" Lucas asked

"Don't worry, your dad will be fine. You'll see him in just a little bit." Lincoln assured him.

Lucas nodded as they all made a break for the jet that was cloaked in a nearby alley.

* * *

 _Location: PLAYGROUND Base_

When the quinjet touched down at the base, Lincoln headed down towards Jeremy's new room to begin the transition process while Alisha took Lucas to the lab medical reasons and Daisy headed towards Coulson's office to update him on their newest tenant.

"So, who's our new guest?" May asked, since she had been in Coulson's office when Daisy entered.

"Jeremy Knights. Age 46, was married and has a son, Lucas Knights." Daisy said.

"Was married?" Coulson asked.

"His wife walked out on him after terrigenesis. Lincoln is currently giving Jeremy the rundown and Alisha has taken Lucas to the lab for intake before Lincoln gives him a child version of the rundown, so we'll know if Lucas wants to undergo the mist when he gets old enough, so we can start preparing him." Daisy said.

"What's Jeremy's gift?" Coulson asked.

"His powers appear to be similar to the effects of the overkill device, only to a greater range and to more than just weaponry, he can overload and trigger a self-destruct in pretty much any nonorganic item." Daisy said.

"You'll serve as his guide?" Coulson asked.

"As usual, but sir, I'll need more space. This base isn't large enough to train inhumans and accommodate them. I need a separate location to take them and train them at the least. A place where they'll be safe. A place like Afterlife." Daisy said.

"Why don't you use Afterlife?" May asked.

"Excuse me?" Daisy asked.

"We'll fix it up and then you can use it for a training center and if the recruits choose stay there." May said.

"Good idea about establishing a new base, but Afterlife won't work. I need to stay here and I can't afford to leave to such a remote location too many times. Are there any other secret bases in Fury's toolbox that might work?" Daisy asked, looking towards the director.

"Maybe I'll check and then get back to you on that." Coulson said.

Daisy nodded as she headed out of the office.


	6. Chapter 6

_Location: Albany, New York_

"Alisha, where are we going?" Daisy asked.

"To see an old friend from Afterlife. One who can help us establish a base." Alisha said, since Daisy had expressed her concerns about keeping the inhumans at HQ with her and Lincoln and they had both agreed with her.

"Who exactly are we looking for?" Lincoln asked cautiously, since he knew that some of Alisha's old friends from Afterlife weren't exactly the nicest.

"Relax Lincoln. It's Miles." Alisha said.

Lincoln looked relieved and then said "Thank goodness."

"Who's Miles?" Daisy asked.

"An inhuman who can create anything out the land. Probably even a base for us." Lincoln said, getting his girlfriend up to speed.

"I just hope we can get to him before Lash does." Daisy said, though she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something familiar about Lash. Something she should recognize.

"You and me both." Alisha said as they arrived at the addressed.

"Remember, we're here to recruit him, not kill him. Only use powers if necessary." Daisy said.

Alisha and Lincoln both nodded as Alisha knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" a voice called from the other side.

"Miles, open up, it's me, Alisha." Alisha said.

A few moments later, the door opened to reveal a tall guy wearing a Mets jersey and shorts.

"Alisha, Lincoln, it's good to see you. And who's this fine beauty?" Miles asked, referring to Daisy.

"Name's Daisy and I'm taken." Daisy said as Lincoln put his arm defensively around his girlfriend.

"Come on in." Miles said, showing the 3 into his house.

* * *

"So, what brings you here?" Miles asked.

"We need you to come with us." Alisha said.

"Into SHIELD? No way?" Miles asked.

"We need your powers to help us establish a new base for inhumans. One that's even more remote than Afterlife was." Daisy said.

"And why should I help SHIELD?" Miles asked.

"Because this Pitbull is your alternative." Lincoln said, showing Miles a picture of Lash.

"Okay, I'll come with you and I think I have an idea about what to do for a base. How do you feel about tropical islands?" Miles asked.

"Why" Daisy asked.

"Because I have an idea. I assume Lincoln and Alisha told you about my gift?" Miles asked.

"Yeah, why?" Daisy asked cautiously.

"I can form a tropical island from the bedrock of the sea that you can build a base on." Miles said.

"Great, come with us to the base so that idea can be approved by Director Coulson." Alisha said.

Miles nodded.

* * *

 _Location: PLAYGROUND Base_

After Coulson had approved the island idea, Daisy hung back in the director's office.

"Is there something wrong Daisy?" Coulson asked.

"Since I'm going to be spending more time at the new base after it's built, I was wondering if May was still cooped up in her room, grieving over Andrew's death." Daisy asked.

"She is." Coulson said

 **(For those of you who haven't seen the latest agents of SHIELD episode, this chapter will contain spoilers, just modified a bit to go along with my storyline)**

Andrew had been crossed off by HYDRA about a month ago, due to him going out for some groceries and Ward's people killed him and blew up the convenience store in the process.

"I don't get it. I mean, I've suffered and lost more than just one person I care about. I've literally seen my whole world come crumbling down in front of me, but you don't see me barricading myself in my room and sobbing. I used the things I lost as motivation to do my job." Daisy said.

"Why don't you try telling her that?" Coulson asked.

"I think I will. She needs to get back in the game and rather than hide herself from the world, she needs to live up to the name the Cavalry and help Hunter track down Ward for good and get revenge for what he did to Andrew." Daisy said as she headed out of the director's office and headed towards the bunks.

* * *

"May, open up." Daisy said, knocking on her old supervising officer's door.

"Go away Daisy." May's voice said from the other side.

"May, you think I don't know what you're going through? I've watched my life fall apart, more than once for that matter, I've lost both of my parents and my chance at a normal life, but do you see me barricading myself in my room. I use the pain as motivation to keep fighting, to make sure the sacrifices made in this line of work weren't made in vain." Daisy said as she started to walk away, just to hear the door open.

"You're right. I'm being ridiculous, mourning Andrew when you've lost so much more and yet you manage to come back stronger than ever." May said.

"Well, I did learn from the best." Daisy said with a smile.

"Thank you Daisy. I needed to hear what you told me." May said.

"Andrew wouldn't want you to waste away in your bunk. He'd tell you to get out there and help Hunter track down Ward once and for all to get your revenge." Daisy said.

"You're right. I'm being stupid. I think it's time I finally embrace the moniker, the Cavalry." May said.

"Welcome back Agent May." Daisy said to her old SO before walking off to join the rest of the inhumans to the right place for Miles to raise the island.


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: after I watched the most recent episode of Agents of SHIELD, I started thinking about possible reasons why Lash wouldn't hurt Daisy and this chapter contains my theory about it. Feel free to put up your own theories or thoughts about mine if you want.**

 **And now, Chapter 7.**

* * *

 _Location: PLAYGROUND Base_

"What brings you back to my office so soon?" Coulson asked.

"I want to go after Lash alone." Daisy said.

"Why would you want to do that?" Coulson asked.

"Because he's targeting my people and I want to know why. Not to mention there's what I saw that night he attacked the ATCU, Frye, Mack and myself where he didn't try to kill me. I think that warrants some answers." Daisy said.

"You're gonna go after him anyway, regardless of what I tell you. Aren't you?" Coulson asked, knowing his surrogate daughter to well.

"Yep, I'm just trying to be polite." Daisy said.

"Just be careful and check in with me every few days." Coulson said.

"Yes sir." Daisy said as she headed off towards her room to pack.

* * *

"Why on earth would you go after that thing?" Lincoln asked his girlfriend as he followed her towards the hangar.

"To get answers. I don't think Lash is the pit bull we think he is. We're missing something here and I intend to find out what." Daisy said.

"And where are you even going to start your search?" Lincoln asked.

"Home." Daisy said simply.

"You're going back to Afterlife." Lincoln said.

"It's as good a place to start as any. I get the feeling that Lash has had his powers since before the outbreak, so there's a chance he might exist in the records there." Daisy said.

"Be careful." Lincoln said.

"I'll try, and remember, while I'm gone, you and Alisha are in charge of the inhuman base creation and inhuman intake." Daisy said as she kissed him before heading off to catch a quinjet that was programmed on autopilot to head to afterlife.

"See you soon. I hope." Lincoln said.

* * *

Fitz, Lincoln, Miles and Alisha were in a quinjet that was currently hovering over the coordinates in the Pacific Ocean that Coulson had sent them to in order to raise the island without drawing public attention to it.

"Alright Miles, you're up." Lincoln said.

"Alright everyone, get ready to be impressed." Miles said as Fitz opened the hatch and he walked out to it.

Mile's eyes turned purple as he held out his hands and beneath the jet, and island began to form, a lush and tropical paradise that was surrounded by dark jagged rocks.

"Well, what do you think?" Miles asked as he finished creating the island, before collapsing.

"It's perfect, let's land so we can find a place to start setting up base." Lincoln said.

Bobbi, who was flying the jet nodded as they began their descent.

* * *

 _Location: Afterlife_

Daisy was looking through her mother's old office, trying to find the inhuman records.

Until finally, she found them.

"Alright mom, let's see if this Lash guy was ever here." Daisy said.

"What are you doing here?" said a creepy voice.

Daisy turned to see the man she was looking for standing behind her.

"Lash." Daisy said, holding out her hands, prepared to defend yourself.

"Save your quakes, I'm not here to kill you." Lash said.

"Why not? Not that I'm not grateful." Daisy said.

"Because I never wanted to kill anyone. I still don't, but something forces me to do it, whenever I find a new inhuman. Or any inhuman at all. Except for you." Lash said.

"Why do you kill them if you don't want to?" Daisy asked.

"Because I have no choice. That right was taken from me after I changed. You wouldn't understand." Lash said.

"Try me." Daisy said.

"When I was born, only my mother and her right hand man knew about me. I was sheltered, hidden away from the rest of the world. And when I went through the change, my mother decided that I would be the one to punish those of our people who she didn't see worthy of having their powers. But then she died and now I can't control it. Whenever I sense an inhuman near, I kill them." Lash said sadly.

"Except for me." Daisy said.

"Yes. I don't know why you're different. But it's like there's something telling me not to kill you, but to bring you here instead." Lash said.

"Wait a minute. Your mother, what did she look like?" Daisy asked, starting to get a bad feeling about Lash's origin.

"An Asian woman, about your height and kind of looked like you, but with scars all around her body." Lash said.

"And your father, do you know anything about what he looked like?" Daisy asked, since it seemed like her worst nightmare and her best dream had come true at once, but she needed to be sure.

"I have a picture of him. One that I never go anywhere without." Lash said, pulling it out of his pocket and showing it to Daisy.

As Daisy looked at the picture, her worst fear was confirmed.

The picture contained the image of man that she knew all too well.

"The reason you won't kill me. I know it." Daisy said.

"Than what is it?" Lash growled.

"Did your mom ever tell you anything about a sister?" Daisy asked.

"Yeah, all the time. She said I'd make our family whole again." Lash said.

"Well, you're not going to believe this, but that's the reason you won't kill me. My name is Daisy by the way." Daisy said.

Lash looked like he finally understood where she was going with this.

"You're Daisy. You're my?" Lash started.

"Sister. Yeah. I'm your older sister and you apparently, are my younger brother. Did not see that coming." Daisy said, still trying to grasp all of this in her mind.


	8. Chapter 8

**I hope you liked that little twist at the end of Chapter 7, but now, Chapter 8.**

* * *

"Why didn't mom ever tell me I had a brother?" Daisy asked.

"I don't know. But that would explain why the chip she embedded in my neck won't let me hurt you." Lash said.

"Wait, did you say chip? As in a computer chip?" Daisy asked.

"Yeah. Why?" Lash asked.

"I think I can at least reprogram it to let you be yourself, but you'll need some serious medical attention to get it removed." Daisy said.

"Really?" Lash asked.

"Really." Daisy said as she pulled out her laptop and began to do what she did best. Hack her way into finding solutions.

"Alright, I've got access to the chip's coding, now all I have to do is reprogram it." Daisy said to her brother.

"Great, but, just out of curiosity, did you know dad?" Lash asked.

"Yeah, and well, he was a bit of a lunatic, but he cared about me. Did some terrible things, but in the end, he saved my life when mom decided I was too dangerous and tried to use her gift to kill me." Daisy said as she finished.

"There, you're good to go." She said to him.

"Thanks, but what am I supposed to do now?" Lash asked.

"Come back to SHIELD with me and you can make it right with all the people you tried to kill." Daisy said.

"I don't know if that's the best idea. What if they try to kill me first?" Lash asked.

"I'll call Coulson on the way and let him about the truth. Hopefully he'll at least give you a chance to make things right." Daisy said.

"But Daisy." Lash said.

"I just found out I had a brother I never knew about. You don't really expect to let him leave without getting to know him first, do you?" Daisy asked.

"I think I'll go human at the very least." Lash said with a grin as he went from his usual pit bull look to human.

"How do I look?" he asked.

"Kind of like dad actually." Daisy said with a grin as they towards the jet.

* * *

"Daisy, what's up?" Coulson asked as she got him on the line.

"I found Lash and actually found out something pretty surprising about him." Daisy said.

"What exactly?" Coulson asked.

"He's my brother." Daisy said.

"What do you mean he's your brother? I thought you didn't have any other family." Coulson said.

"That's what I thought as well, but it turns out I was wrong." Daisy said as she explained the whole situation about Lash to him.

"So, the reason Lash went on a killing spree was that your mother embedded some kind of chip in him that makes him attack any inhuman?" Coulson asked.

"Pretty much." Daisy said.

"And you're certain he's safe to be around?" Coulson asked.

"Yes, I managed to shut down the chip's programming, but he'll need medical attention to have it removed." Daisy said.

"I'll arrange for the surgery." Coulson said.

"Great, see you back at the base." Daisy said.

* * *

Fitz and Bobbi were surprised, to say the least, when they found out that this Lash character that had been hunting inhumans was actually Daisy's brother, but they agreed nonetheless to get ready for surgery for him to get the control chip out of his neck.

As they were setting up the lab for surgery, Jemma walked in.

"What's going on in here?" she asked.

"Turns out that Lash fellow is actually Daisy's younger brother. Long story, but right now, Coulson has us prepping the lab for surgery to remove a microchip neck implant that Jiaying put in Lash years ago." Fitz said.

"Why didn't anyone tell me about it?" Jemma asked.

"Because you've got enough on your plate to deal with without piling anything else onto what you're already going through." Bobbi said.

"Just because I'm going through some tough things right now, doesn't mean that I need to be sheltered and kept in the dark like a child." Jemma said.

"Jemma, no one's saying you can't handle it, we're only doing this because you've been suspended from active duty, including medical duties." Fitz reminded her.

"Oh, right, I forgot about that. My mistake." Jemma said, slightly embarrassed.

"Fitz, I can take it from here if you want to take Jemma out like you usually do every week." Bobbi said, since Fitz had gotten Coulson to approve him taking Jemma out for a night away from SHIELD once a week to help with her recovery, since sometimes, just being in SHIELD with all its distractions was overwhelming for her.

"You feeling up for it Jemma?" Fitz asked.

"Fitz, you know our weekly getaways are one of the only things I've had to look forward to since I got back." Jemma reminded him.

"Okay, so same restaurant as usual?" Fitz asked, since he and Jemma usually went to the same place every week.

"No. Fitz, I want to go and see my parents. I haven't seen them since I got back, especially since I told them the truth about my long vacation the last time I saw them." Jemma said.

"Okay, I'll go let Coulson know and get changed and then we'll head out." Fitz said, kissing Jemma before heading out of the lab.

"Do you parents know that you want to go back to that planet?" Bobbi asked.

"No and I don't plan on telling them. But I'm going to call them and let them know Fitz and I are stopping by tonight." Jemma said as she headed out of the lab to make the call.

* * *

 _Location: England_

Fitz and Jemma had just arrived at Jemma's parents' house, where Mr. and Mrs. Simmons were currently waiting for them.

"Mum, dad." Jemma said, hugging her parents.

"Jemma. It is so good to see you alive and well." Her mum said.

"Well, I wouldn't be here if weren't for this man." Jemma said, looking towards Fitz.

"Yes, Leo Fitz. Thank you for saving our daughter." Jemma's father said to him.

"It was my pleasure." Fitz told them honestly.

"Fitz, don't be modest. You jumped through that portal, knowing that you might be trapped there forever and yet you still saved me." Jemma reminded her boyfriend.

"You would've done the same for me." Fitz said.

"In heartbeat." Jemma agreed.

"Well, why don't all of us head inside and get comfortable." Mr. Simmons suggested.

"Thank you sir." Fitz said.


	9. Chapter 9

After Daisy and Lash landed, Lash was immediately restrained in vibranium cuffs.

"What the hell. Let him go." Daisy said to the guards.

"Agent Johnson, stand down." Coulson said as he and Bobbi approached them.

"Why the hell are you putting vibranium cuffs on him?" Daisy asked.

"As a precaution in case the chip resets to its default settings. We've got too many inhumans on this base to risk." Coulson told her.

Daisy looked like she wanted to protest until Lash said "Daisy, it's okay, I'll take whatever comes. I deserve it."

Daisy nodded and said "I'm going to go and status update on the new inhuman base construction."

Coulson and Bobbi both nodded as Bobbi took Lash towards the lab.

* * *

 _Location: Unknown_

"Are you sure that this is the place?" May asked Hunter as the 2 of them investigated an old, abandoned prison.

"Positive. I went through the list of locations Daisy snagged for us and this place seems the most like what Ward use as a hideout. Besides, this place is where he met Garrett. It's where he turned HYDRA in the first, seems like a safe bet that this is where he'd set up a new base of operations here." Hunter said.

"Good point." May agreed.

"Alright, so what exactly did you have in mind?" Hunter asked, since May was kind of the strategist.

"I say we patrol the area for right now, get a read on the defenses and weak points, things like that." May said.

Hunter nodded in agreement and said "Just remember, once we find a way to Ward, the rat bastard is mine."

"No promises." May said.

"Whoever pulls the trigger first gets to kill him." Hunter said, knowing that they both had a score to settle Ward.

"Agreed." May said.

* * *

 _Location: PLAYGROUND Base_

While Lash was in surgery, Daisy caught up with Lincoln.

"So Lash is actually your brother, who attacked our people because of a chip your mom implanted in his neck?" Lincoln asked.

"Pretty much. Crazy day huh." Daisy said as she kissed him.

"Yeah." Lincoln said when they broke apart.

"So, what's the status on the new base?" Daisy asked.

"Fitz has been working on some designs, but he's been waiting for you to get back to finalize them, since it will be your base." Lincoln reminded her.

"Well then, I guess I'll have to wait for him and Jemma to get back, since isn't tonight their date night?" Daisy asked.

"Yeah, they went to see Jemma's parents." Lincoln said.

"Great, speaking of dates, I honestly can't remember the last time you took me out on one." Daisy said with a grin.

"Well, we've been a little preoccupied dealing with the Terrigen outbreak to have time to go out anymore." Lincoln said, trying to justify his actions.

"No excuse." Daisy said, really laying into her boyfriend before heading to the lab to check on her brother.

* * *

 _Location: England_

"We should probably get back to the base. Daisy should be back by now and I'm certain she'll want to see the plans I've started to lay out for her new base." Fitz said.

"Nonsense. You're both staying here tonight. After all Jemma, we haven't seen you in months." Mr. Simmons said.

Jemma gave Fitz a begging look and he said "Alright, just let me go and inform Coulson that we'll be staying here overnight."

All members of the Simmons family nodded as Fitz got up from the couch and left the room.

"So Jemma, how has Leo been treating you?" her mother asked.

"Relax mum. Fitz treats me like royalty. You've got nothing to worry about with him. He's taken good care of me and has been helping me recover." Jemma assured them.

"Good." Her dad said, right as Fitz reentered the room.

"Coulson approved. Said that as long as we're back tomorrow, it's fine." Fitz said.

Jemma nodded, right as she tried to stifle a yawn.

"I think you need to get to bed. Is there a guest room or is she sleeping on the couch?" Fitz asked.

"We have her old room all set up." Her father assured him.

"I'll help her to bed." Fitz said, wrapping Jemma's arms around his shoulders and helping her up to bed.

* * *

 _Location: PLAYGROUND Base_

Mack and Bobbi were currently standing in the kitchen, watching Daisy and Lash interact.

"I can't believe how quickly she was willing to forgive him for all the terrible things Lash did." Mack said to Bobbi.

"Well, he wasn't in control of his actions at the time, not to mention, he is the only blood related family she has left." Bobbi said.

"So you believe that he's good?" Mack asked.

"I believe that he wants to be and that everyone deserves a second chance. After all, Coulson, May, Daisy, Fitz, Simmons, even Hunter, they all gave us another chance after we double crossed them." Bobbi reminded him.

"I hope you're right and that we can trust Daisy's brother, or else things will get messy fast." Mack said.


	10. Chapter 10

**Warning: this chapter will contain spoilers from last night's new episode of Agents of SHIELD, 4722 Hours. Read at your own risk.**

* * *

"Are you sure this will work?" Jemma asked, looking towards Fitz.

"Absolutely not. But this device is probably our best bet at reopening the portal to get Will back." Fitz said as he worked on the energy transference device he'd designed for the portal generator to harness the monolith fragments' energy and use it to generate another portal back to that planet.

"Okay, I just hope we can generate enough power." Jemma said, seriously looking worried.

"Jemma, before we go on any further, I think there's something else we need to talk about." Fitz said, looking at his girlfriend.

"Yes Fitz, what is it?" Jemma asked.

"I remember what you told me about the relationship between you and Will and I need to know. Do you have stronger feelings for him or for me?" Fitz asked.

"Fitz, what are you saying?" Jemma asked.

"What I'm saying is that if you have stronger feelings for him than me, than I won't stand in your way." Fitz said.

"Fitz, don't be ridiculous. Yes I loved Will once, that was months ago and I was convinced that I'd never come home again. And while I do still have feelings for him, it's mostly out of survivor's guilt. Fitz, you're the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. You're the one I'm in love with." Jemma assured him.

"Oh thank god. I was afraid you'd choose the more muscular guy." Fitz said as he hugged her.

"Relax Fitz, you're the only guy I want to spend the rest of my life with." Jemma assured him as she kissed him.

"Good, now, in order to make sure the portal works properly, I'll need all of the data you gathered about it from the other end, so that we can design atmospheric pressure suits to provide us with protection and supplies for the planet, along with a way to open and close the portal at will whenever we need to, wherever we need to." Fitz said.

"I'll see what I can do, but Fitz, you have to understand, there are still parts of it I can't fully understand, if I can understand it at all." Jemma said.

"I know and I'm sorry if I'm pressuring you, but if you want to get Will back, I need as much data to work with as possible." Fitz said.

"I know, it's just kind of strange to be getting back into the whole agent thing like I never left." Jemma said.

"Take all the time you need, hopefully, Will shall still be there when we find a way to open the portal." Fitz said as he wrapped his arms around his girlfriend.

* * *

"You wanted to see me sir?" May asked as she entered the Director's office.

"Yes. May, now that you and Hunter are back and are taking some time to regroup before you go after Ward again, I have a different assignment for you until then." Coulson said.

"And that is?" May asked.

"Keep an eye on Daisy for me." Coulson said.

"For what?" May asked, thinking that if there was any agent on this base that could handle themselves, it was Daisy.

"I'm worried that trying to assemble this team is getting to her. She already has enough on her plate with Lash turning up as her brother, trying to keep her people safe from the ATCU, overseeing the new inhuman base construction, not to mention trying to fill for you as my second. I'm worried that maybe I piled too much on her and, since you were her SO, I'd like you to keep an eye on her until you and Hunter leave." Coulson said.

"Why don't you do it?" May asked.

"I'm not sure she's completely forgiven me for ratting her boyfriend out to the ATCU. She's been kind of hesitant to follow my orders ever since." Coulson said.

"Can't say I blame her." May said.

"What are you talking about?" Coulson asked

"Phil, Daisy has spent her whole life having her trust undermined. Miles Lydon did it, Ward did it and now you've done it. And considering that she sees you as more of a fatherly figure than a superior officer, which has to sting. Especially since from what I've heard, you just fed her a bunch of excuses, but never even bothered to try apologizing to her for betraying her trust. I'll keep an eye on Daisy like you asked, but once Hunter and I leave again, you'll have to work things out with her, since I won't be here to clean up your messes." May said as she walked out of the office to let Coulson think about what she had said.

* * *

May entered the gym to find Daisy smacking a punching bag.

"How'd you like an opponent that will hit back?" May asked.

"Are you sure you're up to fighting me? Hunter said you only took down 5 out of 11 HYDRA thugs when the old you would've at least taken out 8 of them with one magazine. A sure fire sign that you're getting rusty from your time out of the field." Daisy said, taunting her old SO.

"Is it really necessary to mock me?" May asked.

"Considering the fact that you let your personal feelings allow you to up and abandon SHIELD, abandon Coulson, when we needed you the most, yes, I think you are quite deserving of mockery." Daisy said with a smile as she crossed her arms.

May just chuckled at her old rookie, realizing that Daisy had a point and then said "Well maybe you could help me get back into shape. And you're right. I did my personal emotions cloud my judgement and I left the game when I was needed most. I'm sorry."

Daisy smiled at her as they began to spar.

And it turns out that May was rustier than she thought, since Daisy was actually able to beat her without using her powers. Sure it took about an hour for Daisy to do it, but still, since this was the first time she'd ever beaten the Cavalry, Daisy decided that she'd take it.

"If you're going to help Hunter get Ward, you'll need more practice. Maybe it's time the rookie becomes the SO." Daisy said.

"Not happening, though I do agree with you on needing on practice. I've grown soft." May said.

"I'll leave you to it. I have other matters to attend to." Daisy said as she headed towards the showers.


End file.
